I still believe in the Texans and Gary Kubiak.

”Obviously, it starts with me. All the things we went into the football game saying we had to do to win we didn’t get any of ’em done.”–Gary Kubiak

”To come in and lay down the way we did was very unexpected. We fought to hard to get to this point.”–Dunta Robinson

You’re all so angry. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling in the holiday spirit. I’m willing to let one clunker go unnoticed. Are you with me? How about a little forgive-and-forget?

I’ve gotten emails blasting the Texans and Gary Kubiak, blasting me, blasting this, that and the other. So you say these guys are losers?

Well, friends, let me tell you the story of another supposed loser. He was born a long time ago in Waxahachie, Texas. He butchered hogs and swept floors growing up. He worked three jobs to get through college.

He started with the worst job the Abilene Reporter-News had. He didn’t complain. He just did his job. He worked his way up one rung at a time. Abilene. Austin. Dallas, Chicago. Baltimore. Washington. Houston.

He had some setbacks along the way. He had some bad haircuts, too. He just kept grinding, and even though a lot of people gave up on him, he made it big. If you didn’t guess, I’m discussing my favorite topic: me.

I think I’m a lot like the Texans. Sure there have been some bumps along the way. In the end, though, they’re going to be as successful as I’ve been. I want to stay around and be there for the celebration.

Some call on fourth down, huh? If you’re going to hire an Aggie to be your head coach, you’re going to have to live with the occasional Aggie moment. Aggies everywhere are proud of Gary Kubiak.

This was the day the Texans reminded us that there’s still some work to do. Work on defense. Work on special teams. Work on play-calling. They lost to a really bad football team.

They lost more than a game. They lost a chance at their first winning season. They stacked mistake on top of mistake and they allowed a bad offense to run them off the field.

I’ve read some of the comments, and I’m not nearly as upset as some of you. There are days when a team isn’t emotionally ready to play. Does it start with the head coach? Of course, it does.

Kubiak said it after the game. But losing on Sunday doesn’t diminish four straight losses. The Texans will be playing for a .500 season next Sunday.

This game points up how hard it is to win, how teams have to come ready to play. The Eagles had everything to play for, too, and lost to the Redskins. The Jets lost in Seattle with their entire season on the line.

I still like this team and this head coach. I think Richard Smith might not be around for next season, but let’s be fair about how many holes he has in that defense. He needs at least one more tackle, a pass-rusher and a safety.

I also still see this season as a step in the right direction. When it’s over, Kubiak must take a long look at his staff and his team. The Texans let a victory over the Colts get away. They should have won at Jacksonville and at Oakland.

If you look at them from one angle, they’re very, very close. And yet, this next step may be the hardest.

• • •

On Sunday, the Angels finally wearied of serenading Teixeira’s balcony and confirmed reports they were withdrawing their eight-year offer, estimated at $20 million per.

The weak and gimmicky play calling in the 4th quarter is an ideal example of where the club stands. If you can’t punch it in from the one with your OL leading the way, you can’t win in any league. Why wasn’t at least one try made with the OL and 1-2 backfield blockers attempting to create a hole for Slaton. That play has a better chance than throwing to a WR crossing in the end zone.

Indeed, Richard, there is much work to be done. It was a year of missed opportunities, pure and simple, and today was not an exception. When we don’t put pressure on the opposing quarterback, we don’t gain an advantage. Amobi did have one good play late, and that was wonderful. It wasn’t enough. The best we can hope for is to match last year’s 8-8 finish. We just need some offseason tweaking and another good draft. Offensively, I believe we’ve got the tools, but just no consistency. I think we are that close, but still have a long way to go.

But I’ll tell you this, Richard. When the Texans did have everything clicking, it was fun to watch!

No argument here Richard. I tried to understand why the Texans could not break that 2 deep coverage. Who does call the plays. With the linebackers plugging the gaps to stop the run and the safeties peeling back, the area 10 yards beyond the line was open all day. Daniels made a couple of plays and could have made more. I was also reminded of years past when defenses did the same thing and Dominic Davis circled in that 10 yard area and often led the team in receiving. The Texans did not take what was there, thats what good teams do, adjust their game plan. Instead they forced the plays they wanted to run with predictable results. And for another week they prove that they have no clue in the red zone. That is a big concern for next year. Kubes I believe is paying a big price for his debt to Shanahan.

You know, Richard – I’ve been along for the ride with these Texans since Day 1 and though tonight was another reminder of far we still are, at least we’re not the Detroit Lions… or their fan base. Can we get an outreach program jump started for those guys out there? Or how about Seattle and the Great Sports Depression that has been 2008.

kubiak just showed why he belonga back in Denver. For God’s sake McNair fire the bum after this season. Three years under this moron and we still dont have a winning season. Why do you think the fourth season is going to be any different. And dont give me this crap about how he inherited such a bad team, they were 7 and 9 the year before Capers was fired. What is it going to take for McNair to wake up out of his comma and realize that kubiak just dont have the right stuff to lead a team to a championship. You do want to win a championship dont you McNair?

I am sick and tired of bad coaching decisions. It’s on ething if it happens on occassion. It’s another when it seems to be on a weekly basis. Oh, and let’s not forget the Aggie’s prize catch at QB. Future of the franchise, my foot!

Fans can complain about anything about the loss to Oakland Raider. Oakland Raider was ready to play today and played their best football in the season against Texans. Texans have to reqroup and get prepared for Chicago Bears in last game of the season at home. Be patient and might end up 8-8 for season, again. It was the same when Oilers was playing in Houston and evenly went to the playoff for 4 to 5 years in a row. Texan might do that next year and be patient for next year.

I saw two teams out there and the only the one in silver and black was playing with any passion…it would be nice if McNair would have the nerve to cut Kubes loose and bring on a coach with a lot of promise…of course, I’m talking about Tom Cable (aka “The Cable Guy”)…given that Vince Lombardi himself couldn’t win in Oakland with the now delusional megalomaniac, Al Davis, hovering over every decision, it is impossible for anyone to succeed there. Given that, McNair could take a chance and bring The Cable Guy and Rob (or is it Rex) Ryan with him to run the defense. If nothing else, you would be assured of a hard hitting football team that would play with a chip on its shoulder. Maybe the Cable Guy could bring some Pride and Poise and a

Committment to Excellence to the STeel Blue and Battle REd. I’d also love to see a little more Raiderish attitude at Reliant Stadium as well. I was appalled last week by all of the bandwagon Titan fans strutting around Reliant Stadium before and during the game…maybe they are a little too comfortable doing this in our house and perhaps some, ahem, folks with their faces painted in crazy colors could suggest to these people, that while it is a free country, it would be to their advantage to, ahem, reconsider coming into our house with Titan blue and blue on (if you know what I mean and I know that you do, as you like to say Richard).

Kubes could go back to A&M and help the clueless Sherman get that now hapless program back in shape…he could serve as some sort of Special Teams or Quality Control Coach and then get the Head job when Sherman is shown the door in 2012.

The Texans are still the Texans. Cleary they were not prepared to play this game just as they were ill prepared for the first month of the season. One cannot expect consistency in winning when the head coach/staff/ownership have been inconsistent in demanding excellence. Coaching is the difference in the NFL and so long as Kubiak remains at the top the team will never rise above mediocrity. Shameful. There was a reason Kubiak never got a head coaching job before and why he was never a front line QB. Quite frankly, he just isn’t very smart. The only guys who feel worse than Texans fans today are UAW Chrysler workers holding season seats to the Lions. Merry Christmas Texans. Thanks for the lump of coal.

Wait a sec. I thought the Texans had been officially declared the best football team in Texas. So you’re saying that a team that has been out of the playoff race for weeks already isn’t the powerhouse you declared them to be, just last week?

RJ – I agree with you 100% about this loss being on Kubiak, but do you really have to throw low Aggie jabs in there? Not sure the Aggies abysmal football program has anything to do with Gary Kubiak’s decision making in Oakland on a Sunday afternoon in Oakland. Just my $0.02

Down by two scores at the start of the fourth quarter, how are we not in a no-huddle offense for the rest of the game? I look at them taking 30 seconds per play huddling up and it makes you wonder what Gary is thinking. No sense of urgency whatsoever in the fourth quarter. We acted like we had a 10 point lead for crying out loud…

Anybody want a ticket to the Bears game?I’m an old die-hard,been to many Oilers games years ago long after they were eliminated from the playoff chase,but my heart just isn’t into going to the Chicago game.Before today I was ready to root us in for a 9-7 record,but after the miserable Oakland game I can’t justify making the round trip drive from Galveston just to watch them go through the motions.8-8?I went to the Jacksonville contest in hope that we would achieve that goal last year,but here in 2008 that mark doesn’t hold much glory.Many fans may call me on the carpet,saying I’m not a good fan,I’m fair weather,etc,but I feel like I’ve paid my dues as a Houston fan since the early seventies,and I’m just not into the blind loyalty thing.Richard Smith reverted to his scared to blitz ways,and he just needs to go,period,with Kubiak on a short leash for next season.I love the Houston Texans,but no longer will I just accept whatever they throw my way as a fan in the form of double-speak bullcrap,and the team needs to be held accountable for bad,lackluster play.

Way to be professional about this loss and basically blame it on Aggies in general.

I’ve always put up with the fact that the Chronicle has two longhorn bloggers, but this is a just mean. It has nothing to do with the fact that Kubiak is an Aggie.

And bringing up the fact that the Aggies have had their worst year IN FOOTBALL ONLY in 20 years just proves my point that when it comes to sports, t-sips are just as classless as you claim all Aggies are. Come on, Justice!

Richard. You are a profesional sports writer. Stop taking these losses so personally and just bashing the world in general. I usually like reading your columns and blogs, but please, this blog was just plain insulting.

But I’m afraid I have to say, if you stand by what you posted here, at least regarding the Aggies, maybe Kubiak isn’t the only person who needs to be fired.

[Conference USA is a lot more competitive than you people think. You’ll lead the league in attendance. You can’t be UH, Rice or Tulsa, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. A&M needs to face facts. You’re not finishing in front of Texas. Ever. You’re not finishing in front of Texas Tech. Ever. You’re not finishing in front of OU. Ever. You may not be in front of Oklahoma State or Baylor anytime soon. I don’t know what’s wrong with helpfully suggesting you try a lower level of play. I’m not ruling out you coming back to the Big 12. Just not right now.–Richard]

I challenge anyone in this blog to find anything positive to come out of this game … and to name any other team that would throw the ball on 3rd and 4th and 1? This is the NFL fellas … it’s not High School or the NCAA. That was one of the most embarassing moments in the history of this franchise. The coaching and Schaub’s decision making (especially in the 2nd half) were horrible, simply horrible. This team is going to be this way until we get a coach who won’t tolerate this level inconsistent level of play and will actually smash another team in the mouth on 3rd or 4th and 1 instead of resorting to “trickery”. It’s insulting!

Hopefully Wade Phillips will be available after the season. Then we can bring him back home to Houston to run our defense. I believe he would have the same defensive players playing a whole lot better and we would see our dear Texans in the hunt for the division title next year. Wouldnt that be something? He is a great defensive coordinator and McNair could pay him like a head coach so he sticks around for a while. Kubes would run the offense and Wade the defense.

I totally agree with you Richard… Kubiak is an offensive guru coach, a smart and nice person, an Aggies, and McNair loves him…I am sure McNair will bail him out another year just like the tax-payer bail him out for building their stadium.

I’ve said it before on McClain’s blog, and I’ll say it here – some of you people really shouldn’t drink so much and then get online to spew venom. Listen, I want a winner as much as the next person, but firing a good (even if he’s learning) coach just because he wasn’t able to take a 2-14 team to the playoffs in 3 years???? Huh???? Actually now that I think about it McNair could save sooo much money paying one of you people a million a year to take them to the Super Bowl simply by willing it to be so, and get rid of that loser but up and coming coach Kubiak. What a bunch of crap, but if it makes your little world better to get up and think you know more than someone getting paid millions for what you could do just as well for $100,000 (or whatever meager little salary you earn)then I hope you feel better in the morning…….

just think if that hog butchering had struck a chord within you and you decided to compete with another west texas boy, jimmy dean. and the owens bunch in dallath. and like hyman roth ( from the Godfather) you could say this is the business we have chosen. and when someone put a bullet thru that pigs eye, I didn’t ask who did it !

ok I’ll stop. Go eat a good breakfast at Harry’s downtown and forget about this tough loss for a few days.

[Jimmy Dean asked my dad for his sausage receipe. My dad refused. Had he made that little transaction, I would not be sitting in a 40-degree press box in Oakland, California, wondering when the feeling will be coming back to my fingers.–Richard]

Hey Richard…..this blog is about football, so I’ll put my request here. Former Klein High School football players participate in a Santa Bowl every year…..this year they have invited players from Klein Collins to play and they are playing in honor of Coach Mike Konicki….they have created a website in his honor….kleinbowl.com and all the proceeds from the Santa Bowl will go to the Konicki family. Anyone who knew Coach Konicki remembers what an inspiration he was to so many students. Check out the website and if you want to see some entertaining football, come out to the Santa Bowl on Dec. 26th.

Would a “good” NFL team lose that game? I say the answer to that question is no, which means we are either bad or average at best. Is that enough for you?

[Would a good team lose to the Seattle Seahawks? Should the Broncos have lost? Sports isn’t a zero sum game. It’s also about emotion and talent and even a little bit of luck. The Texans lost a game they shouldn’t have lost. That happens to every team in every NFL season. Those it happens to the least are the ones that end up in the playoffs.–Richard]

All that pomp and circumstance yesterday to close down Texas Stadium and all they got was stomped and circumcised.

And it still stinks to be an Oakland Raider fan. Your owner looks like Gary Oldham in “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” and has all the rationale of an Illinois governor. You have the most obscure coach since Ed Biles.

Oh, and did you ever unload a boxcar full of 100 lb. cement bags in the middle of summer? By yourself? When you were 13? The bright side was that the job was just around the corner from Champ Burger, one of Allison Cook’s favorite burger joints and where I ate every Friday after I got paid.

Dude, I am hammered right now thanks to this loss, but I read this article over and over trying to make sure I wasnt near as gone as I thought I was. There are so many grammatical errors in this thing it had me thinking I was seeing things and about to black out. No offense, im just saying I have been drinking Capt. Morgan since the 3rd quarter in the game and may have written an article with less errors in it than this one.

“The Texans were be playing for a .500 season next Sunday.”

“Sure there are have been some bumps along the way.”

In the end though, I agree with you, although they lost this game, and lost it bad. This season is a step in the right direction. First three game winning streak only to be topped by the first 4 game winning streak this season. The jump from 8-8 to a playoff team is the hardest jump a team can make, but I have a good feeling about what is going on with this Texans team. I trust that Kubiak coaching and Schaub quarterbacking can get us into the playoffs in 2009.

We REALLY need a different moniker for you. How about Richard N. Justice or perhaps “Blind” Justice? Such hubris! (Look it up.) Your low blows were baseless and totally unwarranted. How classless of you to go out of context to the topic of this article (Houston Texans), totally out of bounds in taste to attack Texas A&M. To state they will need to move into Conference USA in order to win?!? I’d be willing to bet you ANYTHING that the Aggies will defeat the Longhorns, Sooners, and Red Raiders in FOOTBALL within the next decade. NEVER? Hogwash! And, you really must also watch the other sports where you’ll soon be seeing Texas A&M winning not only Big XII championships but also those of the national variety! You, sir, are becoming very unprofessional in your sports columns and will soon lose a great deal of your readership!

Thank you for your post, Richard. I have been a loyal – not fair-weather – fan since Day 1 of the Texans. The meltdown against the Colts made the victory against the Titans very sweet. And when the Texans make it to the playoffs, having stuck by them every game, every season will make that sweet too.

Richard, Please explain to me how this season has been a step in the right direction when the only thing that can be achieved is another 8-8 finish and no true game of consequence during the month of December. This team will never be challenged to achieve higher things when the fans and the media in this city are all so limp.

Yeah, Yeah, it’s the same thing we hear every year. “We still believe in this team.” Sure, believe in the fact it’s seven years and they still haven’t had a winning season. Smith and Kubiak aren’t cutting it. Three years and no progress. Time for the ownership to say bye-bye to them.

Everyone just assumed that the Texans were automatically going to stomp the lowly Raiders based on their performances of late, but today was just another kick in the cojones for all of us longtime Oiler/Texan diehard fans. I could accept this beatdown if our ignoramus offensive coordinator didn’t call 2 passes in-a-row with less than a yard to go. We all know that nothing will ever change with this team and that next year at this time, we will once again wonder why Kubiak is being retained and finish with a sub .500 record again.

This game points up how hard it is to win, how teams have to come ready to play. The Eagles had everything to play for, too, and lost to the Redskins. The Jets lost in Seattle with their entire season on the line.

Absolutely right. This ain’t college ball.

I think this was a necessary dose of medicine for these guys. These “fire everyone in sight” people need to get a clue–this club is trending in the right direction.

The New Orleans Saints had exactly the same situation today as the Texans did. Going on the road against two of the worst teams in pro football. Both had 7-7 records with not much to play for but pride. New Orleans and Houston were two of the worst teams in football 3 years ago. Look at the difference between these two clubs today. How can you possibly say we are on the right track. Next year we could easily be 5-11. This wasn’t just a bad team we played today, it was a horrible team. Our defense should give their paychecks back.

It’s really easy for all of us fans to sit back and start chewing out kubiak and the rest of his staff for a performance like today’s but where were all these comments during the winning streak? Last time i checked no one was demanding that kubiak be fired while we were winning, but after this loss (even though it was pretty ugly) we want to get rid of him? Under Kubiak our offense has become one of the best in the league and the defense is improving. Give him a couple more years and this improvement will only continue and we’ll get the playoffs that everyone is demanding. Remember, to go from a 2-14 team to a playoff team takes some time. Kubiak could very well turn into one of the great coaches and brilliant offensive gurus in this league, so why run him out of town? Should we bring back Capers?

It’s after games like this that I grudgingly admire the rabid Cowboy fans we have around here. They are all in for their team no matter what. It really irks me how quick Houston fans (Oilers and Texans) can go from having the greatest team in the world one week to wanting to run everyone out of town the next. And they wonder why our teams always have let downs. Which team is going to do best, the one with a fan base that supports them or the one that knows if they have a bad game their fans are going to give up until they win again? We have a young coach who I believe is going to eventually rate up there with the great ones. We have a young team that doesn’t give up and will be one of the top teams in the NFL. All we need now is more Texan fans that support the team the way the Cowboys fans do.

This is what you get when you go with coaches that have no experience. We have lost at least three games due to coaches x’s and o’s. There is no doubt we have the offenseive talent to compete with anybody, our defense has room to improve, bring in coaches that know what they are doing and we are in the playoff hunt.

I think Kubiak has done well in acquiring players. He’s been an average/poor head coach however. I don’t believe the Texans will ever do better than go to a few playoff games with Kubiak as coach. Kubiak is a great asst coach.

I think your timeline is off. I doubt you spent part of your childhood butchering hogs, although you do that *now* in your blog, albeit with sarcasm and troll bait.

—

“i think most of the Texans believed the season ended after the victory over the Titans…”

Realistically, in another lost season, it did. I’ll bet that win meant more to them than the rest of the victories combined. Too bad they looked past their opponent yesterday instead of building upon it.

—

“…today was just another kick in the cojones for all of us longtime Oiler/Texan diehard fans.”

Actually, for longtime Oiler fans it was a GREAT day…then again we’re still Oiler (Titan) fans.

How long do you Texans fans want to give Kubiak? Some of you say it takes time to build a team to make it to the playoffs. Okay, then how do you explain the Falcons and Dolphins this year? The Falcons are in the playoffs and the Dolphins are playing for the division title next week. How long did it take those teams, answer, one year and better people running the show. Time is just an excuse you want to use to help understand why the Texans stink year in and year out. Your team will never be better than .500 because your coach has no clue what it takes to win. Look at some of the games they have lost this year, there were several that they had no business losing like yesterday! What was the main reason, bad coaching decisions! Don’t just listen to my crazy ideas, listen to what the national media is saying, it’s all the same thing. Oh but wait, this isn’t all on the coach! What about your owner who pulled the trigger on all of the decisions that have led to your team possibly having another loosing season, he must take some of the blame that people are throwing around. Best 2 decisions he ever made were drafting Andre and Mario, after that, it’s pretty much down hill. Look at the bright side, at least you don’t have the Jerry Jones and Me-O drama that we have with Dallas!!!!

Any explanantion as to why a defensive lineman is trying to cover McFadden on a crucial third and long? Also RJ, are the OC and DC made available to the media for questioning after the game? I never see a quote from either one of them.

Someone says, Give him, (kubiak), a couple more years to make improvement… Ok, How about the Texans allow me to postpone payment of my season tickets until he “makes improvement”. I have been a season ticket hold since day one. For all of you that post here and don’t pay, you only have one more game to gripe about. Then I get the bill for next season. Think of that!

I am not going to give the Carr-Capers pass as I did before. He should be repremanded by McNair, in private, and let him know he is on the bubble.

And remember this: Jeff Fisher gave Kubiack a win as a professional courtesy. the odd call he made on 4th down had a 50 50- chance. the game really meant nothing to the titans and could have gone either way. the texans got drunk on that dubious ‘victory’ and while the texan team does have some real talent, it is mostly unfocused.

and finally, the 1st round draft pick, Williams, while he is developing as a player, he certainlay is not a game breaker – Slaton is a nice addidtion and Schuab can play. But the texans could have had a great offensive weapon AND mario Williams a few years ago. Kubiak made a dumb decision there as well.

no the texans are not fixed at all. they may a turned a corner but are still lost they are trending but it is a sideways trend.

they are the Titanic speeding thru an ice burg field with their light off on a cold dark night, with a chest full of false hope.

No their record says they are losers. In order for them to be winners, they would need to finish 9-7. That is now impossible. The best they are is average or mediocre. I guess you are satisfied with this after 7 years.

Dear Richard, I just don’t understand the Chronicle’s need to worship the wealthy—Bob Mcnair, Drayton McLane, etc. They always make such brilliant decisions according to you. I remeber how folks in Texas put people with alot of $$ on pedastels, but I expect different from the journalists. Read the Minneapolis Star Tribune if you want to see good sports journalism. Merry Christmas from a mtero area with 4 major sports teams. (well, maybe not the Timberwolves)

I have a feeling this will go on for a while longer…when i was watching our mnf game and they were discussing mcnair wondering why everyone was so negative, i just knew its going to be a while. The owner doesnt get it and seems to think almost a decade of losing is ok.

If A&M somehow pulls out wins against any of those teams in the next TEN YEARS, what will it prove?

The point is that presently, A&M is an inferior team in a mainly superior conference. Richie enjoys messing with Aggie fans who can’t stand when UT beats them, has a better record and makes a bowl game. Were the roles were reversed, you would do the same thing. If it’s solace you’re searching for, look no further than January 8, 2009.

As much as Justice may rail for the Ags to “move down,” we all know that will not happen. Sit back and enjoy as non-football related Big 12 championship until the football minds in College Station get it right.

I could not agree more with you “none ya”. Justice always takes shots at A&M, but yet he fails to mention that the character of Aggie athletes is far superior to that of UT’s. How many UT football players get arrested a year? How many UT football players get kicked off the team for making racial comments? How many former UT players get arrested? How many A&M athletes have been arrested or kicked off the team? NONE!

I am sure Richard will have some liberal comment back and belittle me by using childish rhetoric or throwing football stats at me because that is what he does. For a man that is so hard on athletes of no character such as TO, Bonds, Clemens, etc., he always fails to mention the likes of Vince Young or Cedric Benson.

We all know that sports are cyclical in nature, and the reason Richard worked in Baltimore during the late 80’s and early 90’s was because UT was awful at football, but when they started to get good he came back. Once A&M climbs out of Big XII football hell, Richard will have to find another school to try and incorporate into his “wittless” metaphors…..that is if the economy does not get him and the Chronicle first.

[Lighten up, Jughead. No sportswriter in this state has written more nice things about Bill Byrne, Mike Sherman, Mark Turgeon and Gary Blair than I have. I love those guys. No school has four people doing their jobs better. Why do you people act like insulting your school is insulting your mama? It’s your school for goodness sake. Nothing more. Cut the cord. As for being liberal, I ain’t thrown rocks at an ROTC building or smoked wacky tobacky in more than 30 years. Just between us, some of you Aggies could use a little of Willie’s special mix. You’re, uh, uptight.–Richard]

Wow! After reading some of the postings I feel good knowing that there are so many NFL coaching experts reading Chron.com. I don’t know the answers like the other posters but I do know the Texans have played some very bad football in many of the games this season. They can’t be considered a seriously good (not great) team until they win the games they obviously should win…like yesterday. Going on the road (and losing again) as a 7 point favorite against a terrible team and losing the way they did says they are a bad team. Forget the Titans game and the four game winning streak. Oilers, Texans…not a lot of difference.

Before this season, I remeber a lot of people saying that the Texans might improve, but that improvement may not be reflected in their record. Overall, I think that is true of this team this year. The offense took leaps forward and the defense came together late in the year once it got more aggressive.

That’s why I think that, though dissapointing, yesterday’s loss was only a temporary set back and does not wipe out the positives of the previous weeks.

It was a game we should have woon. It was a game we could have won. It was a game that good teams put away early. It provides a valuable lesson for next year.

Kubiak will be back. Heck, Smith will probably be back. But the tollerance for these mistakes is at an end.

Hopefully they take the lesson of yesterday’s game to heart and build upon the positives of the past few weeks.

[Lighten up, Jughead. No sportswriter in this state has written more nice things about Bill Byrne, Mike Sherman, Mark Turgeon and Gary Blair than I have. I love those guys. No school has four people doing their jobs better. Why do you people act like insulting your school is insulting your mama. As for being liberal, I ain’t thrown rocks at an ROTC building or smoked wacky tobacky in more than 30 years. Just between us, some of you Aggies could use a little of Willie’s special mix. You’re, uh, uptight.–Richard]

Do not give yourself too much credit Richard as I am far from uptight, just simply stating the facts. Us Aggies get equally defensive about our school as you do when someone takes a jab at the character of UT athletes. I know you right great things about Bill Byrne and crew and for that all Ags appreciate that and believe in your sincerity.

I live and work in Washington, DC and am far removed from the cultish atmosphere of A&M, but if responding to comments that insult my school make me a “jughead” then that officially makes you one as well.

[Listen, Jughead, you can say anything you want about The University of Texas or its jocks. I couldn’t care less what you or anyone else thinks of the place. I went to school there. I didn’t donate an organ. I’ve crushed Mack Brown for recruiting too many thugs. I do think his heart is in the right place, and I do believe in second and third chances. But when kids embarrass the school, he has to draw a line. I’ll be the last one to alibi for the place. My feelings for UT have nothing to do with the football team. People that take that stuff personally are in serious need of counseling.–Richard]

I’m sure not all aggies are as stupid as the ones who post here but some of you just take the bait over and over again. It’s the only good thing about another Kubiak screw up, you getting all bent out of shape when someone mentions that great atm winning tradition. Anyways, fire Kubiak and back up a truck load of money to Bill Cower’s house and beg him for help. Tell him we’ll all grow ridiculous mustaches. Whatever it takes.

What’s up RJ, as I’m sitting on my couch on the 3rd and inches quickly to be followed by the 4th and inches I’m thinking to myself why in the hell is Vonta Leach not in the game? We have arguably the best fullback in the league, goal line situation and he’s not even in as a decoy? WTF?? Then ontop of that I see Slaton go in motion to line up wide and I’m thinking surely we are gonna sneak this to get the 1st down. With an empty backfield we as fans know they aren’t going to hand the ball off so what in the hell do you think the Defense is thinking, and I don’t even get paid to do this?? And is it me or did Vonta Leach not score on a full back dive in the 1st quarter? So why not have him in there fake it to him, have the defense bite because you know they would because the first td is still on they’re mind, and roll Schaub out. OR better yet, let the big dog eat! Vonta Leach is a man’s man, and I seriously doubt if we’ll ever see him get tackled for a loss. I’d bet my house he’d get those 6 inches. Bob McNair needs to ask Kubiak one question, do you want to be the offensive coordinator or the head coach? Choose one! What in the hell does Kyle Shanahan do exactly?? He coached quarterbacks last year a postion he never played, and is the reason of all but a few of our turnovers, so that allows him to be promoted to offensive coordinator?? Give me a break. Great job offensive coordinator whoever you are? Atta way to get your best player involved, the best receiver hands down in the nfl should never Only get 3 balls thrown at him. That’s pathetic. Good game plan guys, nice! I’m so pissed off at this team. I’m glad your call screener at 1560 didn’t let me get on this morning. It would have been something like this “Texans bleep bleep bleep, got they’re bleeps kicked and played like a bunch of bleeps.”

The biggest issue with this organization is we do not have an identity. Who are we on offense? Sure we move the ball but what is our bread and butter red zone play/plays? Is it Kris Brown kicking a field goal? How can you not let your players make a play at 3rd and less than a yard and 4th and less than a yard? I would have no problem if Kubiak had a called QB sneak or a run up the middle on 3rd down or even 4th down and not been successful. That would be on the PLAYERS and not the coaches if you were not successful. How can you not get the ball to your best offensive player (Andre Johnson) hands until the end of the 3rd quarter? I don’t care who is covering him. You can’t call a bubble screen, a reverse, a quick slant, a short button hook or anything for Andre because a pro bowl corner is covering him? Really? Players make plays not coaches!!! You have to get your best player involved from the beginning no matter what. Who are we on defense? Are we a cover 2 defense like Tampa or Indy? Are we a blitz ahoy defense like the Eagles or Ravens? We have zero identity on D. Our only hope is that Mario gets a pressure or sack on pure physical ability, DeMeco doesn’t get washed out and has a clear path to the ball and that a cornerback will actually turn his head and look for the ball!!!!!!! Special teams, Jacoby needs to take a seat on the bench. I don’t care about his flashes of potential. We need consistency. Somebody needs to ask Jacoby if he knows what Jerome Mathis is doing. Coaching is the biggest issue. I believe that Gary Kubiak is a great offensive coordinator but not head coach material. I see no difference between him and Norv Turner, Wade Phillips, Cam Cameron, Scott Linehan, etc. He has not shown any improvement in the biggest areas that a HEAD COACH is totally responsible for which are time management, replay decisions, player substitutions and red zone play calling. Kubiak’s staff is full of his guys who think like him and act like him thus you get a lot of the same from all phases of the team. Who are the Texans? They couldn’t give you an answer because they don’t know and if they did they are not allowed to tell you and Kubiak won’t answer because he is still deciding whether he should take a time out or challenge a play or turn his back in key moments of the game because he is too scared to look. Many passed on Kubiak as a HEAD COACH because others saw it was obvious that he is a great coordinator and his players like him but he is not a LEADER of MEN. He is just one of the guys.

RJ, I do not concur with you in your defense of Richard Smith by stating how many holes he has to fill. Granted we do have holes, but there is absolutely no excuse for a defense to “unlearn” the art of tackling. These guys have made literally thousands of tackles in their Pop Warner, high school, college & pro careers not to mention the countless hours spent practicing. After years of practicing how to tackle dummies, the Texans prove that THEY are the dummies that can’t tackle.

Once the Texans were eliminated from the playoffs I pretty much stopped paying attention, except for the rivalry game versus Tennessee, so this was not a shocking loss to me. The Texans viewed the Titan game as their Super Bowl (just like a couple Titans said afterward), and have as an entire organization already moved on to next year. Clearly they have mailed it in, no matter how much they act protest to the contrary. Expect to get throttled next week by Chicago unless they eliminate themselves tonight from playoff tension. And even then they will lose, they just won’t get throttled.

I hope Teixeira/Boras’ only contract offer is from the Nationals, and he gets to play in a near empty stadium for the next 8 or 9 years. I’m sure the Yankee’s or Red Sox will bail Bora$$ out and make him an offer.

Wow, I love reading all the scathing comments left on here about the ‘professionalism that’s lacking’ or whatever. Last I checked, this wasn’t an article written for the Chronicle, it’s a blog where he can put his personal feelings on what’s been happenig in the world of sports.If you want objectivity, don’t read blogs.Anyway, Kubiak will still be around next year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Richard Smith was too. I’m really not happy about the Smith portion of that last sentence, but oh well. The loss yesterday was 100% on the TEAM. I’m not going to let anyone off the hook there. The coaching staff made some pretty horrid calls, and the players themselves came out with absolutely no heart whatsoever.That being said, I’m not too worried about it. Seven days ago, we were stoked about possibly having a winning season, and then one loss to a team that came and played WAY above it’s level to date and you’re back to being the same whining, irritating, stupid, fair weather fans that make the Houston sports clubs the laughingstock of the nation.I’ll be here, still wearing all my Texans gear, and going out to the games. I’m there whether we win or lose. Way to represent, Texans ‘fans’, I was starting to wonder where you’d all been for the last month.

Don’t worry about RJ. He loves to get people riled up and mad so that he can sit back all calm and say “Man, that guy is a jerk. Look how mad he is. Can you believe that?”

Case in point was when Mr Clemens was about to rip Rich’s head off during the whole steroids scandal. My guess is that RJ wants to get fired from the Chronicle so that he becomes more controversial, thereby getting a larger contract with a national media outlet.

you know I always thought that the move Forest Gump should been set in Texas- that Forest Gump be one of the infamous attendees with Bear at the Junction Texas training camp. Then perhaps he could have taught astro physics at A and M before the Viet Nam war.

then the famous line could have be ” Aggie is as Aggie does, Sir”

and maybe a scene where he was trying to date all the girls at the Chicken Ranch.

( I went there one night and when I finally found the place it was full of aggie baseball players in the parlor- some going back for their second or third “date”- my friends and I decided to leave without playing and just cruise back to Houston after getting some BBQ.)

Has your opinion changed on Alex Gibbs yet? Last time I checked in on your blog, you were putting him down for yelling at his players but not producing any improvements in the run game (it was still preseason).

[You don’t check very often, do you? That topic was covered weeks ago.–Richard]

You think richard smith and the defense was responsible for the loss to the raiders, colts, and jaguars? I think those losses soley fell on the hands of three people who had no affiliation with defense.

1. Sage Rosenfelds(back up quarterback)-The helicopter fumble against the colts and another fumble afterwards.

2. Joe Marceono(special teams coordinator)-The jaguars fake punt touchdown run in jacksonville. If that touchdown was prevented then we would have never gone into overtime.

3. Gary Kubiak(head coach/offense)-A playcall to pass on fourth and inches on goal line. Did’nt you learn your lession in the ravens game? I don’t care what you thought you saw. You can throw schaub in there too if you want because he was terrible in this game as he was in a few other ones.

Every one needs to lay off of richard smith and this defense.(especially you richy because you guys have the same first name. You’ll never here me say anything bad about rodney dangerfield.) The most blame lies on turn overs made on OFFENSE not defense.

heres the big problem i have with the texans,texans fans, and local sport reporting. Quit writing articles about this sorry team. cover something else. fill up more pages of more newsworthy teams like uh cougs, high school teams. anything but the texans. this whole town buys into following a professional football team, but everyone is forgeting—–they are terrible—-always have been—-years away from doing something worthy of attention. i predicted this situation before the season started. i predicted 7-9. why? because i take a honest approach regarding this frachise. come on people, the texans are several years away from a winning record. probably 2-3 years from a 500 season, and about 7-10 years away from division championship. take a step back, breathe, relax, and quit expecting so much. these guys havent done enough for anyone, i mean anyone to get excited about. now if local writer and reporters would stop filling the average texan football fans (with not much football knowledge, this is why your in this predictament anyways) with all this attention, people wouldnt feel so left down. you guys can get upset with the coach one week, the qb the next, the o-line the next, the defense the next, not going for it on 4th down, going for it on 4th down, penalties,ect…..s**t, these are all excuses. its pretty funny watching all of this most after all this time, im tired. I quit wishing bad thing on the texans 3/4 years ago. i just feel pity. honestly the texans should have a fan base of about 10,000 fans. you know like a good high school football team.

+1 on living with the Aggie head coach! You mentioned bad haircuts. Funny, when you get to the top, the hair fails to follow along for the ride. At least you don’t have to worry about dropping the dough on those bad clips! Personally, I’m a McClain guy, but you seem to infuriate me enough for me to keep reading so keep it up!